Pobres defensores

Doesn't it just make your p.d. spirit cranky to hear another insult from a putative progressive - an ACLU board member, say, or another "open minded, left leaning, otherwise intelligent, public spirited, trained lawyer"?

It sure rankles David Feige of Indefensible:

In other words, the big problem with failing to abide by a treaty our government has signed (the Vienna Convention) is that foreign nationals wind up having to be represented by PD's? I find this insinuation particularly galling given that Levitt is writing in the context of the prosecution of Mexican nationals--does he have any idea just how good the Federal Defender programs in San Diego or Southern Arizona (which handle a highly disproportionate number of those cases) are?

No, I don't think he does, nor do I think he bothered to look any further beyond the public defender stereotype.

A couple of years back, I had a professional experience with the Vienna Convention and the Mexican government when I was appointed to represent a Mexican citizen accused of murder. Officials from the Mexican consulate in Salt Lake took an active interest in my client's case, as part of their government's increased emphasis on "provid(ing) consular assistance to Mexican nationals abroad, particularly to individuals sentenced to death." I appreciated the assistance and the opportunity to work with Mexican diplomats and lawyers, and together I think we eventually got as good an outcome for my client as could be, considering the facts of the case.

However, even they harbored some of that anti-p.d. skepticism, I think. At least I inferred as much the day when I got a call from one of my less-liked private bar colleagues. Seems that the Mexican consul called to find out how much he'd charge them to take the case off my hands. ¡Ay, qué lástima!